Antonio J. Carpio

• PhD
• Professor (Assistant) at University of Córdoba

Summary. The red-legged partridge Alectoris rufa is not only the most important bird game species but also an important prey species for many predators in Iberia. However, its populations have significantly declined in recent decades, principally as the result of agricultural intensification on arable land. Its abundance has also undergone a signif...

This study investigates the environmental factors, that influence the timing of winter fur change in the mountain hare (Lepus timidus). The transition from brown to white fur is a critical adaptive strategy that allows hares to remain camouflaged in snowy environments. Using data collected with camera traps from various elevations and latitudes, we...

ABSTRACT Integrated One Health studies are essential to assess the potential risks associated with leishmaniosis hotspots in Europe. Thus, the aim was to holistically evaluate Leishmania infantum epidemiology in a rural hotspot in Spain with a high incidence of human leishmaniosis. Samples from 145 humans (blood), 41 dogs (blood and hairs), and 41...

Los pulsos de recursos tróficos son eventos breves y temporales de alta disponibilidad de recursos en un ecosistema, como agua, nutrientes o alimento, que puede tener efectos significativos sobre las dinámicas de las poblaciones y las interacciones entre especies. Este estudio examinó la depredación de nidos artificiales de anátidas en el Parque Na...

Comprehensive research into the environmental factors that affect the spatial and temporal variability of benthic macroinvertebrate communities in the headwater coastal streams of Ecuador is limited. Therefore, a study was carried out in four headwater coastal streams to address this gap. This study lasted for 2 years and included two surveys in su...

1. The Iberian Peninsula is witnessing ever-faster environmental changes, and new challenges for wild ungulates are continuously emerging as they become more abundant and widespread. 2. We conducted a systematic review to analyse the knowledge on wild ungulates inhabiting the Iberian Peninsula. We used Web of Science and Scopus search engines, comp...

Bats are one of the most diverse mammal groups, and one of the common inhabitants of urban environments globally, dealing with artificial lightning, ambient noise, and habitat loss. However, there is usually less bat diversity in urban landscapes than in natural habitats, although cities can offer adequate conditions too. To test which were the mai...

The global biodiversity crisis is driven by habitat changes to meet escalating food demands and is particularly evident in Mediterranean Europe through agricultural intensification and rural abandonment. Commercial hunting of red-legged partridge (Alectoris rufa) may benefit biodiversity where hunting estates manage for habitat quality. This approa...

Connectedness with nature is considered a key element for the future of conservation. There are both internal and external factors that determine the levels of connectedness with nature. Among these factors are gender, age, knowledge about the environment and place of residence. In the latter case, there may be differences in how urban and rural dw...

The fishing gear deployed by fishermen in seas and oceans throughout the world not only captures target species but also unintentionally ensnares non‐target species, a phenomenon known as ‘by‐catch’. This unintended capture of marine life can represent significant challenges for the fishing industry, with adverse impacts on both the environment and...

The fishing gear deployed by fishermen in seas and oceans throughout the world not only captures target species but also unintentionally ensnares non-target species, a phenomenon known as 'by-catch'. This unintended capture of marine life can represent significant challenges for the fishing industry, with adverse impacts on both the environment and...

The presence or absence of lichens serves as an indicator of the condition of an ecosystem and the degree to which it is contaminated by various agents, such as agrochemicals and metals. Evaluating the use of lichens as bioindicators of agrochemical contamination could provide a more comprehensive perspective of current contamination levels. Monito...

Toxoplasmosis is a parasitic zoonosis of key importance in veterinary and public health. This article summarizes the available data (from 2000 to 2023) of exposition to Toxoplasma gondii in wildlife species in Spain based on a systematic bibliographic search, as well as further analysis of its potential relationship with environmental variables, bi...

The global biodiversity crisis, driven by habitat changes to meet escalating food demands, is particularly evident in Mediterranean Europe through agricultural intensification and rural abandonment. Counterintuitively, commercial hunting of red-legged partridge ( Alectoris rufa ) may benefit biodiversity managing estates for habitat quality rather...

The presence or absence of lichens serves as an indicator of the condition of an ecosystem and the degree to which it is contaminated by various agents, such as agrochemicals and metals. Evaluating the use of lichens as bioindicators of agrochemical contamination could provide a more comprehensive perspective on current contamination levels. Monito...

Abstract A new regulation has led to the prohibition of recreational hunting on estates located within Spanish National Parks (NPs). Before the ban, eleven NPs in Spain had already reported negative ecological consequences associated with high densities of wild ungulates. The new situation that has occurred after the ban signifies that policies wi...

ABSTRACT. Social perception of ungulates and their management depends on both their abundance and the socioeconomic context. However, an approach that addresses this issue is currently unavailable. Our objective was to employ a survey in Spain (n = 440) to evaluate the knowledge and perceptions on the eight species of wild ungulates that inhabit th...

Genetic exchanges between species provide valuable opportunities to dissect the relative importance of neutral and selective processes driving introgression events and to test their functional relevance. In the northern half of the Iberian Peninsula, the Iberian hare, Lepus granatensis, presents extensive patterns of mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) intro...

The Iberian Peninsula is witnessing ever-faster environmental changes, and new challenges upon wild ungulates are continuously emerging as they become more abundant and widespread. We conducted a systematic review to i) sum-up the available scientific knowledge on Iberian wild ungulates, and ii) highlight a set of open questions regarding different...

La información actualmente disponible sobre la ocurrencia y diversidad molecular de los protozoos enteroparásitos Cryptosporidium spp., Giardia duodenalis y Balantioides coli en ungulados salvajes y su papel como fuentes de contaminación medioambiental y de potencial infección humana es muy escasa. En este trabajo investigamos la presencia de estos...

Context The expansion of exotic plantations can impose conservation challenges on wildlife, and the Iberian Peninsula has one of the widest planted areas of exotic Eucalyptus sp. in Europe. Since mesocarnivores are pivotal elements of ecosystems’ functioning and Eucalyptus have been modifying the Portuguese landscape context in the last half centur...

Sea level rise has accelerated during recent decades, exceeding rates recorded during the previous two millennia, and as a result many coastal habitats and species around the globe are being impacted. This situation is expected to worsen due to anthropogenically induced climate change. However, the magnitude and relevance of expected increase in se...

Ecuador is one of Earth's biodiversity hotspots and is characterized by a great diversity of aquatic ecosystems. Despite its rich biodiversity, the Ecuadorian coastal region is severely impacted by human development. However, there are few studies on the water quality of its rivers or streams. In order to contribute to this gap in knowledge, the ob...

Little information is currently available on the occurrence and molecular diversity of the enteric protozoan parasites Cryptosporidium spp., Giardia duodenalis, and Balantioides coli in wild ungulates and the role of these host species as potential sources of environmental contamination and consequent human infections. The presence of these three p...

The supplementary feeding of wild ungulates is a common and pervasive practice throughout Europe, but the understanding on its unintended ecological effects is still limited. This management action has different degrees of intensity from artificial grasslands to supplementation in feeders, since the type and criteria of each supplementary feeding p...

Body condition (BC), is a measure to assess the health status of domestic and wild animals. When food resources are abundant, a decrease in BC may indicate an increase in the energetic expenditure due to the effects of growth, reproduction, or disease. BC impoverishment is one of the most common clinical effects of diseases progressing chronically,...

European wild rabbit (Oryctolagus cuniculus) and red-legged partridge (Alectoris rufa) are main small game species of conservation concern in Mediterranean ecosystems. To date, their presence in wild boar’s (Sus scrofa) diet and factors driving their consumption have been little investigated. A genetic metabarcoding approach was used on 80 wild boa...

Q fever is a worldwide zoonosis caused by an obligate intracellular bacterium, Coxiella burnetii, with only anecdotal reports of human-to-human transmission. The cause of human Q fever infections is the circulation of C. burnetii in animal reservoirs. Infected livestock, particularly goats and sheep, may cause Q fever outbreaks in humans. However,...

Sandy beaches are the preferred nesting habitat for sea turtles. Multiple climate change events may, however, impact on this habitat, since the projected increase in the intensity and frequency of high tides as a consequence of rises in sea level and storm events may cause a higher rate of flooding of nests. Knowledge regarding future scenarios of...

Simple Summary Native wild boar populations are expanding across Europe, causing concern due to their significant soil disturbances and considerable impact on ecosystems. However, little is known about how wild boar activities affect other organisms. This study investigated the effects of wild boars on the abundance of fungal sporocarps and their r...

Fisheries bycatch is a primary driver of population declines in marine megafauna. These captures not only have environmental impacts, they also have economic consequences for fishers such as direct losses when repairing fishing gear. Therefore, evaluating the fishers’ perception of bycatch and comparing it with data from scientific fisheries observ...

Connectedness to nature influences the well-being and health of individuals, communities, and the planet. Although many validated scales exist, none includes the three fundamental aspects of any attitude: the affective, behavioural, and cognitive components. The study’s main objective was to develop and validate an integral tool, the ABC Connectedn...

Human–wildlife conflicts are a growing problem in Northern Hemisphere where wild ungulates are one of the taxonomic groups most frequently involved. To mitigate these conflicts, it is essential to develop preventive actions able to avoid encounters between wildlife and human (activities). We here employed photo-trapping to evaluate the behaviour of...

Understanding the variables that influence pro-environmental intentions is key to promoting pro-environmental actions. In this research, we analyze how the sense of responsibility toward climate change and implicit theories about climate change (ITCC) interact to condition individual pro-environmental intention. A total of 48 psychology students wi...

Aim of the study: Traditional vineyards have, in the last few decades, been transformed into trellis systems, but little research has been carried out into the consequences as regards biodiversity. We compared the abundance and species richness of reptiles in conventional-traditional vineyards and trellis vineyards. Area of study: The study was co...

Sea level rise has accelerated during recent decades, exceeding rates recorded during the previous two millennia1. Many coastal habitats and species around the globe are vanishing2. This situation is expected to worsen due to anthropogenically induced climate change. However, the magnitude and relevance of expected increase in sea level rise (SLR)...

BACKGROUND Fences are one of the most widespread manmade features in nature, constituting an artificial limitation to the movement of wildlife. To date, their effects on wildlife behavior have been understudied but this knowledge is required to design effective management procedures. Using 21 GPS‐monitored wild boar, we evaluated the permeability o...

The definition of the most relevant parameters that describe the wild boar (WB) population dynamics is essential to guide African swine fever (ASF) control policies. These parameters should be framed considering different contexts, such as geographic, ecological and management contexts, and gaps of data useful for the parameter definition should be...

Sustainability implies improvements in responsible behaviors such as recycling and energy saving. Yet, ecological behaviors cannot be improved only by attending to personal variables; focus must also be put on the collective variables. The main aim of this research was to analyze how individual variables (environmental values) and collective variab...

Wildlife populations are experiencing drastic changes in their areas of distribution and abundance in the last decades and, therefore, population monitoring programs should be implemented to support effective management strategies. In this case, we have focused on the Iberian wild goat (Capra pyrenaica) population nucleus from Parque Natural Valle...

This study aims to develop and validate an instrument to analyse future Secondary Education teachers' perceptions regarding the development of Teachers' Professional Identity (TPI). The data were collected from a sample of 733 participants who were students enrolled in the Master's Degree for Secondary Education teachers. The psychometric propertie...

Coral communities contribute to increasing the structural complexity of marginal reefs, provides biological resources, and drives biological and ecological interactions among reef organisms. Declines in the structural complexity of marginal reefs due to the influence of anthropogenic activities had been recently reported around the world and just i...

Super high-density olive groves (>800 trees ha⁻¹) are rapidly expanding in olive oil producer countries, which entails a strong modification of the olive growing system with important agronomic, economic, sociocultural, and environmental consequences. Among them, the latter is particularly unknown. The aim of this paper is to bring the attention on...

Aim The role of mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) in local adaptation has been thoroughly debated, and the ancient pervasive mtDNA introgression from Lepus timidus into Lepus granatensis allows testing of this hypothesis. Here, we study the environmental niche of animals with introgressed mtDNA, to gain insights about the potential selective pressures main...

The intensification of agriculture in olive groves, especially the modification or elimination of spontaneous vegetation, alters the relationships in arthropod communities and reduces their interactions and ecosystem services. This study was carried out in nine olive groves in which there was either a planted cover crop, spontaneous cover crop or b...

Wildlife management and conservation requires monitoring of species distribution and population indicators, especially when the unbalanced demographic changes of some species can affect the whole ecosystem functioning. The populations of wild boar (Sus scrofa) have, over the past few decades, undergone an expansion around the world, reaching situat...

The knowledge regarding the spatial ecology of red deer (Cervus elaphus) in different environments is crucial if effective management actions are to be designed. However, this knowledge continues to be scarce in the complex contexts of mixed land use and management circumstances. This study describes the spatial ecology of red deer monitored using...

Teacher-training programs around the world, and especially in Europe do not specify in detail the capacities that future professionals should acquire, so it brings about a great discussion among educators, researchers and teachers. The main objective of this study is to know and evaluate the level of competence development acquired by future Second...

Understanding the dynamics of a wildlife population in relation to hunting strategies is essential to achieve sustainable management. We used monitoring data over 25 years from two red deer (Cervus elaphus) populations with different management (with and without supplemental feeding) in South Central Spain to: (i) characterise the density dependenc...

Natural and human-induced stressors have threatened the sustainability of the fish communities of coral-rocky reefs worldwide in the last decades. The composition of the fish communities on the reefs of Ecuador and the factors affecting spatiotemporal changes are unknown. We studied the influence of the descriptors of structural complexity, the cur...

One of the main aims of Content and Language Integrated Learning (CLIL) is to develop intercultural awareness and understanding among students. The objective of this study is to analyse whether CLIL primary education teachers implement the intercultural axis of CLIL in the strategies and resources they plan and use in their daily lessons, and which...

1. High-density populations of large ungulates are now widespread. However, the perception of overabundance only appears when it produces a problem for humans, such as a loss of plant diversity, damage to agricultural crops and forestry, ungulate-vehicle collisions, a nuisance to humans, disease transmission to livestock or changes in habitat for o...

Cover crops can be an effective means to protect soil and reduce risks of erosion in olive groves. However, for this protection to be significant, the vegetation must attain a significant amount of ground cover, which is estimated to be at least 30% during the rainy season. In olive groves on degraded soils, which occupy large surface areas in the...

The nesting environment is known to significantly affect the breeding success of sea turtles. Sandy beach habitats, where sea turtles nest, are frequently affected by high tides and waves on Ecuadorian beaches during windy events. The objectives of this study were: i) to determine the variables that affect nest site selection by two sea turtle spec...

Aim of study: To identify the environmental variables that affect the Cicadomorpha communities and the role played by cover crops in olive groves by comparing olive orchards with cover crop to those with bare ground. Area of study: Córdoba, Spain. Material and methods: Two study plots, one with cover crop and the other with bare ground, were deli...

Hard coral coverage contributes to increasing the structural complexity of coral reefs, provides biological resources and drives biological and ecological interactions among reef organisms. Declines in the structural complexity and coral diversity of tropical reefs, due to the influence of anthropogenic activities, have been reported around the wor...

Content and Language Integrated Learning incorporates among its main aims the development of intercultural awareness and understanding. Nowadays, it is imperative to prepare students to become active citizens in such globalised societies. The principal objectives of this study are to examine how curricular competences affect content planning and wh...

The biodiversity of farmed landscapes is, in the context of agricultural intensification, a key aspect with regard to improving the sustainability of agroecosystems. Olive groves are undergoing rapid changes because of the spread of intensive farming systems, which may have negative environmental impacts. This paper reports a survey on the abovegro...

Assessing the pathways by which alien species are introduced is essential if we are to identify potential risks and evaluate management decisions. Intentional introductions are responsible for the introductions of millions of animals throughout Latin America. We explore: (1) the relative role of several intentional introduction pathways (hunting, f...

Se presentan los resultados del análisis de las opiniones de 353 estudiantes del Máster de Formación del Profesorado de Educación Secundaria de la Universidad de Córdoba (España) sobre la competencia transversal centrada en planificar espacios de aprendizaje que favorezcan el respeto y la igualdad de género. Mediante un cuestionario escala Likert s...

Monitoring European rabbit (Oryctolagus cuniculus) populations using suitable methods is crucial, especially in those areas in which endangered predators remain and rabbits occur at low densities. We first counted the number of rabbits, the number of scattered pellets, and the number of latrines counted within 16 plots established in areas of low r...

Resumen Se presentan los resultados del análisis de las opiniones de 353 estudiantes del Máster de Formación del Profesorado de Educación Secundaria de la Universidad de Córdoba (España) sobre la competencia transversal centrada en planificar espacios de aprendizaje que favorezcan el respeto y la igualdad de género. Mediante un cuestionario escala...

In a context of the growing concern about the impact of biological invasions, our objective is to review the role of those non-native species that have primarily been introduced for angling purposes in at least one European country. We are particularly interested in: (1) the relative role of sport fish species in the context of non-native species i...

• Agricultural intensification has greatly affected biodiversity in recent decades. One common and recent transformation that has taken place in Mediterranean countries is olive grove intensification, although its effects on biodiversity have rarely been studied. • In the present study, we investigated the effect of soil management practices, with...

Este libro compila una serie de investigaciones donde se destaca la importancia de las competencias en la docencia universitaria, como el conjunto de habilidades, conocimientos y actitudes que promuevan un entorno de aprendizaje efectivo, requiriendo que el docente sea más allá de un facilitador de contenidos, un integrador por medio de experiencia...

Los distintos manejos a los que se ve sometido el medio ambiente repercuten de forma directa sobre la biodiversidad que esta alberga. Estos manejos varían dependiendo del uso de la tierra, así sea agrícola, cinegético, ganadero, forestal, etc.… y por lo tanto sus efectos sobre el hábitat y las especies que contiene son bastante variables. La presen...

The range of wild ungulates, and principally that of red deer and wild boar, has expanded throughout the Mediterranean Basin in recent decades. The abundances of these species have also increased dramatically, and they are now attaining densities that often exceed ecologically admissible thresholds. This situation has been favoured by several facto...

The intensification and expansion of agriculture is currently one of the greatest threats to biodiversity worldwide. Olive groves are one of the most extensive and diverse agroecosystems in the Mediterranean region. However, the efficiency of the methods used to sample arthropods in olive crops remains unclear. We compared the effectiveness of pan...

Sustainability is a key attribute for the future of the olive grove. Cover crops can be considered as an effective tool to achieve sustainability of olive orchards to reduce soil erosion, improve soil fertility and increase biodiversity. However, wild herbivores may forage on cover crops when natural food resources are scarce. In this study we asse...

The intensification and expansion of agriculture is currently one of the greatest threats to biodiversity worldwide. Olive groves are one of the most extensive and diverse agroecosystems in the Mediterranean region. However, the efficiency of the methods used to sample arthropods in olive crops remains unclear. We compared the effectiveness of pan...

Hunting activities are responsible for the translocation and restocking of millions of animals throughout Europe, including the introduction of alien species. In a context of the growing use of game translocations and of increasing concern about the impact of biological invasions, our goal is to review the role of alien species introduced primarily...

Walkway on coastal dunes negatively affects mobility of the spiny–footed lizard (Acanthodactylus erythrurus).— Dune systems are the most degraded ecosystems of the entire European coast, and human activity on the Mediterranean coast of Spain has caused dramatic transformation. In Torredembarra (Tarragona, Spain), a population of spiny–footed lizard...

The intensification of agriculture entails the simplification and homogenisation of the landscape, which has serious negative impacts on animal biodiversity. Herbaceous ground cover in olive groves creates heterogeneous patchworks that differ as regards how intensively farmed olive groves are structured and composed, which may lead to a decrease in...

Understanding how the diversity of invasive species is geographically distributed and identifying the major drivers of that pattern is a relevant challenge as regards invasion biology. The aim of this paper was, therefore, to identify and characterize those areas colonized by a high number of alien species as a means to provide directional indicati...

The wild boar has, over the past few decades, undergone an expansion in Europe, which may have negatively affected ground-nesting bird populations and particularly those of wading birds. The aim of this study was to evaluate predation on waders’ nests by wild boar in Sweden, where this species has been increasing since its reintroduction. This was...

The simplification and homogenisation of agricultural landscapes has led to dramatic losses of farmland biodiversity. This decline includes passerine populations and one of the mechanisms that may be contributing toward this may be increased nest predation. Ground covers are agri-environmental measures whose objective is to halt the loss of biodive...

El incremento exponencial de la población humana de los últimos siglos ha transformado la agricultura conduciéndola hacia el objetivo de obtener una mayor producción para poder satisfacer la elevada demanda de alimento. Para poder alcanzar este objetivo se realizan prácticas agrícolas convencionales como son el uso de fertilizantes químicos, fitorr...

The arrival of a new variant of rabbit haemorrhagic disease virus, known as RHDV2, has recently taken place in the native range of the European rabbit (Oryctolagus cuniculus), a keystone species which has undergone a sharp decline over the last sixty years as a consequence of certain harmful factors. Several works have noted the presence of this ne...